A major new international ad campaign stars Pope Francis going hard promoting the COVID vax. The vaccination is “an act of love,” he says.
“Thanks to God’s grace and to the work of many, we now have vaccines to protect us from COVID-19! They bring hope to end the pandemic, but only if they are available to all and if we collaborate with one another,” Francis says in the ad.
“Getting the vaccines that are authorized by the respective authorities is an act of love. And helping the majority of people to do so is an act of love. Getting vaccinated is a simple yet profound way to care for one another, especially the most vulnerable.”
Francis himself was vaccinated with the Pfitzer vaccine earlier this year.
By taking part in the campaign, Francis and the six other US and South American prelates in the ad became part of an elite group of global influencers. The stellar-vax promoters include former presidents, first ladies, athletes, musicians, actors and even Elmo from “Sesame Street.”
The prelates describe vaccination against COVID as a moral responsibility.
Speaking from the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Mexican Cardinal Carlos Aguiar Retes says “as we prepare for a better future as an interconnected global community, we want to bring hope to all, without exclusion.
“From North to South America, we support vaccination for all,” he says.
Noting the world has much to learn from the virus, Honduran Cardinal Oscar Rodriguez Maradiaga says “one thing is certain: The authorized vaccines are effective and are here to save lives. They are the key to a path of personal and universal healing.”
The US Ad Council, which created the ad, says it chose the pope to deliver the COVID-vax advert because the messenger “can be as or more important than the actual message itself.
“To the world’s billion-plus Catholics, the Pope is one of the most trusted messengers and holds unparalleled influence.
“We are extremely grateful to him and the Cardinals and Archbishops for lending their voices and platforms to help people across the globe feel more confident in the vaccines.”
The Vatican was one of the first states to offer free vaccines to all its citizens and employees. The Vatican also provided vaccines to thousands of homeless people from Rome.
Vaccination campaigns across the Americas have been uneven. The latest data shows that in the United States, while 72 percent of the adult population has received at least one dose of the vaccine, just 67 percent of adult Hispanics have been vaccinated.
Worldwide, COVID-19 cases are on the rise, especially across Latin America where rates of individuals fully vaccinated range from only 5.5 percent in Honduras to 30 percent in El Salvador.
Source
